National Child Safeguarding Week from Monday, 8th September to Sunday, 14th September 2025.
John Wesley powerfully declared “Every Child Matters”, and a significant way of us honouring that declaration is to also honour National Child Safeguarding Week from Monday, 8th September to Sunday, 14th September 2025. As part of our commitment to child safety, throughout Child Safeguarding Week, we are proud to finally be sharing with you some of the many steps we have been taking as part of our comprehensive safeguarding program to strengthen safeguarding and child protection at Wesley College and our upcoming child safety plans, including this newsletter and the week’s celebrations being the start of more frequent child safety messaging and updates.
As a college, we know there have been historical failings in upholding John Wesley’s declaration, and we will always be indebted to the courage of former students who came forward to disclose their experiences of historical harm and abuse at the College. These college failings and our engagement with the Abuse in Care Royal Commission have significantly shaped the safeguarding strategies embedded across the college today. A key lesson from the Royal Commission for us and all organisations in Aotearoa New Zealand’s children’s workforce is that being a child safe organisation requires significantly more than relying on a passion for supporting children and operating to legal requirements. Strong and intentional safeguards are essential to prevent harm and promote a safeguarding culture.
A key response from Wesley College to our learnings has been a commitment from our governance and leadership to ensure the safety and well-being of every student is our highest priority, and that moving forward, the College as an establishment goes beyond operating to compliance and demonstrates child safety best practices. Hence, with support from external safeguarding specialists, we have been embedding practical, proportionate, and sustainable measures to help us build and embed child safety best practices and a safeguarding culture across the College.
Firstly, we take this opportunity to share with you this Whaanau and Wesleyans Safeguarding and Child Protection at Wesley College guidance, which has been specifically tailored to guide you through our current and upcoming child safety steps. Centred on the 10 Child Safe Organisation Principles, we are embedding them into the College’s framework and across all College physical and digital environments. This guidance, along with our progression through Child Safeguarding Week, will offer more insight into the work we have been doing to create a robust safeguarding framework, and we're excited to highlight some of these key initiatives. Such as our:
• Safeguarding Committee and how the Committee steers us through implementing a Child Safety Improvement Plan structured to safeguarding and child protection best practices and tailored to the College.
• Designated safeguarding staff, who collectively cover all working levels from governance to frontline and include a full-time Safeguarding Officer.
• Compulsory child safety requirements supporting us in embedding safeguarding as a shared, accountable workforce responsibility.
• Compulsory initial and refresher safeguarding and child protection training for all staff, so everyone has and maintains the knowledge and skills needed to apply our best practice requirements.
• Suite of child safety policies and procedures, including a spotlight on our revised Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy, Complaints Policy and Staff Code of Conduct.
Developments in and plans to strengthen the empowerment and participation of students and whaanau in developing our safeguarding solutions and our safeguarding journey.
Safeguarding and Child Protection at Wesley College, for Whaanau and Wesleyans
